Improvement in revolving battery-towers



3 Sheets-Sheet 1.

T. R. TIMBY. REVOLVING BATTERY TOWER.

Patented July 8, 1862.

1 2 HHHHIHHH 3 Sheets-Sheet 2.

T. R. TIMBY. REVOLVING BATTERY TOWER.

No. 35,846. Patented July 8, 1862.

3 Sheets+8heet 3 T. R. TIMBY. REVOLVING BATTERY TOWER.

N0. 35,846. Patented July 8, 1862.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

THEODORE R. TIMBY, OF WORCESTER, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVEMENT IN REVOLVING BATTERY-TOWERS..

vSpecification forming part of Letters Patent No. 35,84 6, dated July 8, 1862.

To all whom it may concern Be it known that I, THEODORE It. TIMBY, of Worcester, in the county of Worcester and State of Massachusetts, have invented an Iniprovement in Revolving Towers, to be stationed on land or water for defensive or offensive warfare; and I do hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and'exact description of the same, reference being bad to theannexcd drawings, making a part of this specification, in which- Figure l is an elevation of the tower, showing the embrasures and lookout; Fig. 2, a vertical section of the same; Fig. 3, a perspective .view of the bed-plate and central shaft with its appendages; and Fig. 4, a top view of the commanders platform with its fixtures of telescopic sight, hand-wheel, and signal-pulls.

In a revolving tower WitllOlll: special provisions the connnanders platform or station must be fixed thereto and revolve therewith. When, therefore, it is desirable to concentrate thefire upon a fixed point or object, this necessitates, if that officer would keep his vision upon the object attacked, his constant progression in a direction contrary to that of the revolution of the tower. So, too, if the commander would keep a vigilant watch in all directions, as would be requisite in an attack upon water, or in an attack from both land and water, for instance, he would be compelled to fly from one point to another, and often, in consequence of the opposite revolution of the tower, his progress might be fatally retarded. It is my present purpose to overcome these difficulties, and with this view I combine with my revolving tower a central independently-revolving shaft, upon the top of which, and in close proximity to the lookout, is arranged the conimanders platform or station, which is under his constant control, and may at his option be revolved to the right or the left,or suffered to remain stationary, no matter what may be the condition of motion imparted to the tower, or whether it be in a state of rest.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will proceed to describe its construction and operation.

My revolving tower, whether placed on land or water, is constructed entirely of iron or steel plates of any desirable thickness either-in the particulars or aggregate; or it may be backed up or lined with timber, or with other suitable material. Its form may be cylindrical'or conico-cylindrical, a truncated cone, or a pyramid, and it should be covered with a bomb-proof roofing, having a lookout at ornear the top of the tower, which latter may consist of a slot or aperture through the walls or ramparts around its en tire circumference,interruptedonly at such points as is necessary to support the roof, which may be dome-formed,or something in the shape of a flattened bell, in which case, if preferred, the lookout may be formed through the barrel thereof," *The "tower may have one or more tiers of gtin's,bu't it'will be found-generally that one'tier is allthat a sea going vessel will need or bear. slide in andout of battery upon radial ways,

and of. course their extreme number in eachtier will be regulated by the circumference of the walls. The tower revolves upon its foundation or base around its vertical axis by steam'or other power, and through the instrumentality of well-known or other mechanical agents, so that all its guns may be concentrated upon any point of the compass, follow a movingobject, or attack a stationary one, the time occupied in the revolution of the tower being sufficient to allow the guns to cool for repeated discharges. From Within a hollow pivot which forms the eye or center of the foundation or base of the tower, and around which the tower revolves, rises a vertical shaft having proper bearings, whose top bears the commanders platform or station, and'to which an independent rotation is given by means of a shaft with a hand-wheel at-' tached to its upper end, extending down along the central shaft from the eommanders station to a fixed collar attached to the said central shaft, where it is stepped, and has, a little above the step, a pinion which gears into a circular rack on the inside of the hollow pivot. This arrangement admits of an independent revolution of the platform at the will and by the exertion of the commander, and he can, of course, turn himself to any point desired while the tower continues its separate revolution or remains still.

Such is a general description of the improvement I now claim as new.

I shall next proceed to specify those ele- The guns give t my comsented, and described one feet my invention, I shall claim all when the joint and individual my tower and central shaft is as In the ease of a land-to excavated for method of carryin into efiethods ope .tion of indi tted.

wer the g mud is the purpose of recei ng the the deck of the floating battery or gunoat, so'

the alt ude of ll be exposed above. F] m the center of this foundation,

of the track, rises the pivot or short & aft B, which is cast or otherwise made hello to receive the circular rack a, pinion b, and ihafts c and c. The driving-shaft D, carryi g the pinion has its bearings in the four ation upon which the railway-tracks are la: ,and extends to the motor, which is situate from under the tower a-proper distance, 2 d onland is located in a-\bo;nb-proof vaul To thebase of the toweris fastened the Fa ry"; wheel F, by means of the hangers 0,! .'.-ng teeth on its under face with which the teeth of the pinion E mesh. The tracks A being of unequal radii, the friction-roll rs d revolve, each series independently o the other, on the shafts e, whose bearings; -e in the base of the revolving tower and i the hangers g. Friction-rollers l are als arranged around the well G, bearing ag inst the pivot or short shaft B, to prevent l: erel deflection of the tower as well as to l ssen or from the zenter i friction. The well or curb structed concentrically with tower, receives at its b shaft B, and through itand the hollow pivot or shaft passes the shaft 0, which is stepped at h, and carries upon its upper end the platform H with its G, which is conthe axis of the ase the hollow pivot or sired point of the compass by means of the hand-wheel i, whose shaft 0, extend'ng along down side the shaft 0, is stepped in .he fixed collar or hearing k, and carries the pinion d,

with the is cut in the barrel of the dome station or through any other point thereof, or throu 7 elevation diminished accordingly.

From this description it will be observed that the commander of the tower may have an unobstructed view, the lookout on being practicall; unobstructed during the entire revolu' tion of the tower, and that he may change the direction of his view at will or remain stationary, and this independently of the revolution of the tower.

aving thus described my invention and pointed out th manner in which it operates, what I claim therein as new, and desire to secure by't iers Patent of the United States, 1s-

A revolving tower for land 'or water, de signed for offensive or defensive warfare, when combined with an independently-rotating shaft, upon the top of which is arranged the commanders platform or station, as described THEODORE R. TIMBY. Witnesses:

Jorm W. SHUGERT, EDM. F. RRo-WN. 

